Relationships between the distribution of wildlife and livestock diversity

Abstract

Aim Wild biodiversity and agrobiodiversity are affected by challenges such as agricultural intensification. However, it is unknown whether or not both components of biodiversity respond similarly to environmental factors and to these challenges. Here, we examine the spatial relationships between the distributions of wild biodiversity and agrobiodiversity, to quantify how and where they covary across the geography. Location Mainland Spain, a European region that harbours high values of both wild and agro‐ biodiversity. Methods We used geographically weighted regression models to analyse the spatial variation in the relationships between the distribution of wild vertebrates and environmental and agrobiodiversity variables. We modelled the spatial gradients in species richness of native terrestrial vertebrates—that is, specific groups of amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals—as a function of local livestock breed richness—that is, bovine, ovine, caprine, asinine, equine and porcine—climate variables and human footprint. Results We found significant covariation between the distribution of native vertebrate species richness and climate, human footprint and livestock diversity. Overall, the association between species richness of the four wild terrestrial vertebrate groups and local livestock breed richness is positive across most of the studied area. However, local breed richness of cattle and sheep breed displays contrasting patterns, where cattle breeds associate positively to most wildlife vertebrates and sheep breeds show negative associations. Main conclusion Wildlife diversity distributions are significantly associated with livestock agrobiodiversity. These spatial relationships are mediated by large‐scale environmental gradients. Since both, wildlife and livestock agrobiodiversity, tend to co‐occur spatially, future strategies for conservation in agricultural landscapes could benefit from integrated approaches.

Changes on the Climatic Edge: Adaptation of and Challenges to Pastoralism in Montesinho (Northern Portugal)

“…In addition, inconsistencies in grants between traditional pastoralism and wildlife habitat creation continue to grow with new subsidy regimes promoting pristine land cover (Barnes et al 2016;Ribeiro et al 2016). Despite this, recent studies have shown positive synergies between livestock rearing and wildlife biodiversity, pointing to the value of integrated management of both components (Velado-Alonso, Morales-Castilla, Rebollo, et al 2020). However, there are fewer owners, unconsolidated flocks, and fewer shepherds due to a decline in the traditional mixed farming systems (Scoones 2020).…”

Recent land use and management changes decouple the adaptation of livestock diversity to the environment

“…Our finding suggests a break between local breeds and their associate environments, as even in areas with high breed richness the abandonment processes tend to dominate. This calls for conservation actions to avoid breed extinction, associated with sustainable development based on local resources and the conservation of wildlife 64 .…”

Disentangling the Multidimensional Relationship between Livestock Breeds and Ecosystem Services

“…Additionally, some native breeds are specifically adapted to less favorable environments, where usually much wild species biodiversity is found, as these environments work as refuges [ 78 ]. Considering a large territorial scale, a positive relationship between the distribution of wild diversity and livestock breed diversity has been found in long-term anthropized areas [ 20 ]. More research is needed to understand the livestock breed effect of supporting habitat services for wild species at a specific ecosystem scale [ 79 , 80 ].…”

“…Therefore, clarifying the relationship between livestock breeds and ES would improve the inclusion of livestock breeds in sustainable management and policy design through specific conservation, environmental and social objectives. In this way, the ES management through livestock breeds could improve the sustainability of livestock systems and agroecosystems [ 12 , 17 , 18 ] and contribute to biodiversity conservation [ 19 , 20 ].…”